Broken
by NaviraBlack
Summary: The 'Day of Ice' only comes around once ever 10 years and it brings the Kouseki Twins, a pair of demons that are known for killing even the strongest Onia slowly from the inside out. OkiOC, Slight SamickleOC and SamickleOki
1. Prologue

Broken

It seems I'm the first to post one of these…everyone seems to like Waka more then they like Oki…hmm…ANYWAY! I thought I'd post this cause well; the idea just came to me and I really liked it! I'm not giving up on my _Never Ending _Dream/_Neverending Dream _fiction, just wanted to get this started before I _TOTALLY _lost the idea. If you have read my other Okami Fic and have taken a liking to Kari then this would be good to read, the events aren't mentioned in N.E.D. but it does tell of Kuraku's past.  
PS: It's said in the story but everything in _**BOLD ITALICS **_is Ichiro speaking. EDIT: _Italics _are Kuraku.  
Pairings: OkiOC  
Okami & All the characters © Clover Studios  
Ichiro's overall appearance © Meh beloved Ishi-Chan  
Ichiro's Personality and Past, Kuraku (Kari) © ME and my loverly imagination,

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Prologue

_I have so many memories…_

_**Family…Love…Friendship…Loyalty…what do these words mean? I've always asked that, what do the words mean to people I don't know, to the people of Nippon what do these words mean? In Kamui, most people will give you the same definition and it rarely varies. Loyalty is an important characteristic, Family comes first and then Friendship and Love is**** they say it's indescribable. That's why I want to know what people would say about them in Nippon. I love stories from Nippon, but none of them display all of those characteristics. They have stories of great heroes and gods and demons and evil beings and everything but not a lot of their stories have all three aspects, well there is one…the one about Amaterasu but that's not important. We know Nippon's stories…do they know ours?**_

_Broken pieces of your dream…_

**_My name is Ichiro (1) of the Hatsukoi Clan, not that it matters to us Onia because we're all like one big huge family, for the most part. I love stories and I know most of the stories told by the Onia Tribe and I also know many told within Nippon, rather its fairytales or legends or simply stories, I know so many of them and have take my fair share in legends well I've been in two and my name isn't mentioned in one and the other is a story and it isn't very well known, and I wasn't really to important in that…but my family has had it's fair share within legends._**

_The same tears are always shed…_

**_My parents were known within the Onia Tribe due to their family lineage as well, on my father's side there always seems to be two children born, a boy and a girl and the Hatsukoi Clan is a straight descendent from a great human priestess who was raised in Kamui by the Onia Tribe, that's a different legend though. My mother's family is known for their wonderful sense of smell. The legend of my ancestors isn't important in this story, or at least it isn't that important…alright so my mother's story isn't that important…My sister, well…the story I wish to tell you is hers. This story isn't mine, its Kuraku's (2)._**

_We will not realize what is precious until we have lost it…_

**_It started ten years ago but I'm only going to tell you about that. You see this story is already long without encompassing a whole ten years when only one week in those ten years was so important. The week began with the death of our parents when she was nine and I was seven, they were killed by an unknown demon though it looked like they had just up and died and that is what the others all believed. Kuraku took on the role of mother and father for my sake and trained hard to become a stronger fighter then I was so she could protect me, I was often teased because of it but I did my best not to let it effect me. She also learned how to cook well so she could feed and take care of my needs, everything she did back then it was always for me._**

_Leave our fears behind…_

**_A week after our parents died we all heard strange howls coming from Yoshpet, howls so empty and lifeless that they seemed to rip you to pieces inside. The howls of two demons so strong that even I could feel them when I walked through the desolate ice land that was our home. Kuraku, who was in an emotional wreck, ran off into Yoshpet to find these demons and destroy them. When I tried to find help to look for her, everyone laughed and told me it was all pointless until Oki came along and helped me search parts of Yoshpet. It wasn't pointless, we did find my sister but she hadn't managed to find the demons, Oki became one of our closest friends and it is because of these bonds of friendship that formed on that one day that everything else happened._**

_Our promises made long ago…_

**_It'd been ten years since then and the demons hadn't been seen at all, I thought everything was going to be alright, I never thought this would happen to Oki and Kuraku, to the village, to us all. It was frightening and horrible and I had a feeling something bad would happen but I just dismissed it as my mind, always worrying about things pointlessly…_**

_I could never forget…_

**_"Yukihime (3), can you hear me calling, protecting you even to this day…your family is in danger…I will do all in my power to save you and your brother." Back then, I would have strange dreams about a young girl by the name of Yukihime and a voice telling her everything would be alright that whoever was speaking was protecting her. I wanted to help the girl and to comfort her and the night before everything I heard a new voice…"Yukihime, you're end has come." I wasn't sure what to make of it…and I simply dismissed it as a dream…little did I know…it wasn't._**

_It was the end of your dream…_

_

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_I HOPE YOU LIKE IT! I thought it'd be interesting to have it being partially told from one of the sub characters views so I picked Ichiro because he's in the action but he's not the most important character! Tell me if this is horrible and tell me if it is good! Thanks everyone who read this!  
(1) Ichiro translates into first/one son  
(2) Kuraku translates into pleasures and pain or joys and sorrows  
(3) Yukihime literally translates into Snow (Yuki) Princess (Hime) 


	2. Chapter 1: Blizzards and Demons

Meh, short beginning…sorry! 3 Thanks again to the loverly blackwolf2dragoon and MordreLupis for my first two reviews. This chapter is kind of long! I hope you enjoy it…I have nothing else to say so here we go!  
Disclaimer:  
All Places, Oki, Kai, Lika, Samickle © Okami  
Ichiro's overall appearance © Ishi  
Ichiro's Past and Personality, Yukihime, Gin & Kin (Kouseki Twins), Takumi, Kokoro, Kichiro, Kuraku © Me!

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Chapter 1: Blizzards and Demons

_Predictor, Defender, what do you see? I am lost and alone without you, my beloved brother and you are what drives me forward. You are what keeps me from falling; I will live up to your memory as long as you are with me in my dreams. I shall look up to the sky and see the clouds that you so loved looking back down to me…So what do you see, my Takumi(1)._

_Deep within the forest the demons sleep, waiting for the day of frost to come. The demons of gold and silver thirst for revenge against the princess. The day of ice is equal to the day of death…_

_**This has all started because of the legend of Yukihime and whatnot but more importantly because of the Day of Ice. It comes around only once every ten years and on that day are some of the worst blizzards Kamui has ever seen, not only that but it's the only day that the two demons called the Kouseki (2) twins come around and can be seen within Yoshpet. The Onia tend to stay inside on this day, we probably should have stayed inside like the others but Kari (3) wouldn't allow that. ****She insisted we go and see if the legends were real and of course she managed to convince Oki and Kai and even Lika to come with us. I don't get it, why did she have to go and see if the demons were real.**_

**_Anyway, we were making our way to Oki's house and I was just kidding around with her and she got mad, like she always did. I didn't stop so she just stormed off without another word, I was use to it but this time leaving us behind wasn't very smart especiallybecause of what day it was. After that, Lika just walked off towards Yoshpet because Kai and I were to busy talking talking to each other. I guess Lika is as crazy as Kari. We went off to find her…and what we found was bigger then just Lika._**

Snow fell over the icy land of Kamui painting the monster infested landscape a beautiful and pure white. Though some of the people and animals there had been corrupted by the monsters presence it was nice to see that the awe striking land hadn't been changed much at all. Still, the snow that fell wasn't as pleasant as the sight; in fact it was harsh and cold. High winds blew through the hills and mountains of Kamui and large pieces of snow hit upon the Onia Village of Wep'keer. All of the members of said village were inside their houses trying desperately to keep warm, all of them but six, five of them weren't even in the village.

Two of them were currently trudging through the snow making their way towards Yoshpet. Ichiro and Kai were trying amazingly hard to find Lika who had just taken off into the snow while the two were talking with each other.

Ichiro looked over his shoulder at Kai who was being slowed by the icy storm that blew around them. He came to a stop and transformed moving to help her through the snow storm, "We have to find-"

"KAAAAAAAAI! ICHIROOOOO!" A small green figure darted towards the two. Ichiro shivered looking up, they were right in front of Yoshpet.

**_There was something in Lika's eyes…it was a look of total fear and fright…of horrified pain. I couldn't look at them because it was too intense; she must have seen something amazing, I was sure of that at least. Maybe Lika was like me…maybe she saw things she was never meant to see…maybe Like was in pain just like me._**

"Lika, what's the matter?" Ichiro asked kneeling down next to Lika who launched her arms from Kai's leg to Ichiro in seconds. Ichiro frowned, "What did you see?" He asked before hearing a sharp and earsplitting howl pierce the air.

"ICHIRO! LOOK!" Kai yelled pointing at a huge monster several times her height thatadvanced forward on them from out of Yoshpet.

**_The moment I looked at the monster's eyes I was frozen on my spot. Kai had her eyes closed but I could feel that Lika had frozen up on my leg too. She had stopped shaking completely. The monster was a huge wolf with shining golden fur and ice blue markings on its back. Its eyes were a soft and depressing pale blue that seemed to put your straight into a trance._**

**_I felt Kai grab me and run into Yoshpet as quickly as she could. I remember just as we entered Yoshpet, I heard a young girl screaming._**

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

"AHCHOO!" Kuraku slipped her hand under her mask and rubber her nose, marching onward through the snow oblivious to the trouble her brother had run into. She finally reached a lone house not far outside of the outskirts of the village. "Oki?" She asked slowly, "Are you ho-ho-AHCHOO!" Kuraku sneezed again.

"I'm here." Oki said walking outside and looking at Kuraku. He sighed and turned around leading her into the house. "Just give me a few more seconds." He said simply and got to work. He slung a sword over his shoulder before grabbing a thick cloak and throwing it to Kuraku. "Are you sure you're going to go through with this?" He sighed.

"Of course! Don't try to stop me, Oki!" Kuraku giggled standing up and pulling the cloak on. "Thank you, by the way." She added and threw her arms forward, causing two daggers sliding out of each sleeve and into her hands, she smiled and spun them around. "Alright! Shall we?"

"What about the others?" Oki asked slowly, "Samickle and Kemu would kill me if I let them get hurt…not that Samickle and Kemu COULD kill me…but they could try."

"They went ahead; they'll be fine I'm sure. I mean, as I've said before, what's so dangerous about a blizzard? The villagers are just overreacting with all this Yukihime crap. With the Yukihime and the day of the Ice, oh no! A big blizzard is going to kill us! I bet this…demon is just a little rabbit." Kuraku said.

"That's not like you…" Oki led her outside before continuing, "I mean I remember when you were nine and you totally believed these demons existed."

Kuraku stopped walking and sighed, "The death of my parents is unexplainable…" She said slowly.

Oki blinked looking at Kuraku, something strange was going on, she wasn't being herself, it worried him. He shook his head, not that he was about to admit that openly, he had built up solid defenses around himself. If he got attached to someone…it could end up dragging him down.

Kuraku continued to walk onward through the snow, the winds were starting to pick up around them but the snow had yet to fall. Oki picked up his pace trying to keep up with Kuraku who was walking pretty far ahead. She took a sharp turn and entered the heavy trees of Yoshpet with Oki on her heels; the two didn't see the tracks on the ground as they went the opposite way as Kai and the others had.

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

**_All I remember is that Kai was running as fast as she could with the demon on her heels. Kuraku sure had been wrong about them not being there, she had been VERY wrong. Now we we're being chased by it, but…was it such a bad thing? I felt like this was all meant to happen…but I wasn't sure…I knew something…several moments before we started running I had heard the name of the demon…Kin (4)._**

Kai stopped in a clearing, panting slightly as she glanced over her shoulder and fell forward. Ichiro snapped out of trance and caught her before looking up over her shoulder at where they had came from; Lika shook her head and sat down slowly.

Another howl pierced the air behind them and the golden wolf was sitting at the edge of the clearing. Kai closed her eyes tightly again and Lika did the same but Ichiro turned and looked at the wolf, its pelt was shining in the light that came through the trees from above. It was almost enchanting, so much so that Ichiro couldn't pull his eyes away from it.

**_I couldn't look away, no matter how hard I tried I just couldn't look away, the wolf shifted forms right in front of me and I could hear Lika scream in fear of the wolf butmy jaw just dropped as I gazed at the wolf, forgetting what I was standing in front of. A has wind blew through out the clearing and I walked forward, my memory slowly disappearing, I couldn't remember where I was or why I was there or anything, all that mattered was the beautiful woman that stood in front of me. She had long and flowing black hair and beautiful blue eyes, soft and caring. They were my mother's eyes. The wolf had changed its shape into my mother._**

"Come here, my son."

Ichiro nodded and walked forward unaware of the danger of it all. Everything was a memory that he lost slowly; he could no longer remember why he was there or who he was or the people he cared. All he knew was that the person in front of him was important.

"ICHIRO STOP! IT'S A TRICK!" Kai screamed. "That thing isn't really Kokoro (5)!"

_Who's that? I heard my name?_

"ICHIRO STOP! PLEASE!" Kai continued.

_No…come forward my child…_

"IT'S NOT REALLY HER!"

Ichiro snapped out of his trance and stumbled backwards watching the wolf in front of him shift forms and Ichiro gasped loudly. "You…you're her!"

**_What now stood before me was amazing, she once again had Kuraku's eyes…the same beautiful blue eyes but there was something different about them they were a deeper blue they Kuraku's. Long hair, as white as snow, fell to her waist. It was beautiful. It was the snow princess, standing before me, but she didn't shine the way that Father said she did, there was something dark about her…_**

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

Kuraku sighed softly, watching her breath freeze the moment it exited her mouth. She drew her cloak tighter around her and looked around slowly before glancing over her shoulder and waiting for Oki to catch up. She kept her eyes on the ground, not daring to look up, almost thinking that something was going to kill her if she did.

"Kuraku?" Oki asked slowly as he walked up and put his hand on her shoulder.

Kuraku jumped several feet into the air letting out an alarmed scream, her eyes wide as she looked over her shoulder at Oki who started laughing, trying hard to regain his calm attitude.

"That wasn't funny!" Kuraku snapped, clearly embarrassed that she had Oki had scared her. "Let's go, I don't see any demons and I don't smell anything…" She said slowly looking at the trees, she hated Yoshpet, but she wasn't about to admit that she did.

"I didn't mean to scare you…" Oki sighed looking at her, "We've only been in here for a little while, what's the point in turning back now? Going out into the blizzard wouldn't be smart and the trees are so thick in here it's not snowing as bad." That was more of a lie then truth as Oki could hardly see five feet past his nose but it was more then two feet past his nose.

"B-But Oki…something doesn't feel right in this place." Kuraku said slowly turning around and looking at Oki, "I'm not kidding! Something feels so freaky about this place!"

"You're just scared. Fine, if you can't go any further, go back and freeze. Fine by me." Oki said flatly continuing forward, leaving Kuraku in the snow.

Several moments later she caught up with him and hit him over the head. "Don't be stupid! You can't go into Yoshpet alone!" She growled, "You honestly think I'm going to let you? Well sorry, not happening, pal!"

Oki tried not to laugh as he continued forward once more and glanced at Kuraku, he was actually kind of happy that she didn't leave. She stopped and grabbed his arm, causing him to jump before looking at her carefully, "What's…wait…what do you smell?"

"I smell…one…two demons…one is a female to the east and the other is a male to the west…the female is a shape shifter…I'm not sure what form…the male is huge, in the form of a wolf…they're powerful and smell of blood…and…the male's aura is growing larger…" Kuraku paused, "He's one mile away…his aura is still growing…"

"Is he stationary or moving?" Oki asked.

"HE'S COMING STRAIGHT AT US!" Kuraku screamed.

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

**_Kuraku and I weren't just known for our family, I was well known for my distinct howl and Kuraku was well known for her amazing sense of smell. She could tell a million things about a demon just be smelling it, it was kind of strange but everyone else thought it was amazing._**

Ichiro quickly transformed and let out a long and piercing howl, hoping someone would hear and come running too his aid. It wasn't likely; they hadn't saved his parents, but no matter what he would protect Kai and Lika they didn't deserve to die yet.

"You're pathetic, you stupid demon! How dare you taunt me like that by transforming into Yukihime!" Ichiro snarled andlooked over his shoulder at Kai and Lika, "Stay safe." He said softly, "Only get involved if you have too in order to protect yourself."

"Oh ho! So you know your family line, young pup." The voice of the demon was so enchanting that it almost put Ichiro back into his trance. "You know, the snow princess wasn't as pure as you Onia were raised to think. Did you know that your beloved princess left you all for a human life?"

"Lies!" Ichiro snapped, "Yukihime wouldn't have done such a thing!"

"What proof of that do you have?" The demon taunted.

"SHE DIED TO PROTECT US FROM STUPID DEMONS LIKE YOU!" Ichiro screamed and lunged forward only to be blasted away by a great big ray of golden light. He flew into a tree and slide down the trunk to the base.

Ichiro pushed himself up and glared forward, "Bitch!" He growled and charged forward again, dodging the light that had hit him before and sinking his teeth in the demon's arm, not daring to let go, ignoring Kai's yells.

The demon finally managed to throw Ichiro off, sending him flying into a tree once again. Kai gasped and ran over to him, pulling him onto her back and dodging the demon's attacks. Lika followed her and they dashed from Yoshpet.

**_I was so determined to prove to everyone that I could do it, that I wasn't a wimp but at the time it was more then just that…I wanted to protect Kai and Lika…I wanted to prove that I could. They didn't deserve to die…and this demon was taunting my family…taunting Yukihime…taunting my sister. I had failed though and the last thing I remember before blacking out was Kai trying to keep me awake._**

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

Kuraku's eyes grew wide. She shoved Oki to the side and jumped upwards as a flash shot through the trees and a huge silver colored wolf stood where the flash stopped. The wolf itself was stunning and was truly the size of Samickle, Oki, Kai, Tuskle and Lika all put together. The wolf threw back its head and let out a long, depressing, bone-chilling howl covering up that of Ichiro's.

"Get out of here, Kuraku!" Oki commanded transforming as the monster turned on him, acting as if Kuraku wasn't even behind him. He charged at Oki in a way that looked like he was floating in air as the flash had been. Kuraku gasped and unraveled a long rosary before taking aim and lashing it around the demon's foot, causing to stop.

"I'll deal with you in time, daughter of Kokoro and Kichiro (6)." The demon said its voice was chilling and cold as ice. "Your downfall will be slow and painful."

"Don't touch him!" Kuraku screamed and charged forward until a loud screeching sound hit her ears causing her to fall forward, screaming in pain. The sound was like a high pitched screaming that made her head pound in pain.

"Leave her alone!" Oki's voice was faint but angry as he lunged forward at the demon only to simply be pushed away by the wolf's claws. They cut through his skin as if it was butter and sent him flying against a rock. Oki stood up and glared up at the demon.

"Protector! You are weaker then the last excuse of a protector! You are weaker then the predictor!" The demon laughed evilly.

The screeching stopped as the demon turned on Kuraku who stood up slowly, "Leave. Him. ALONE!" She screamed pulling out her daggers and lunging forward, dodging the demon's attacks and flipping through the air. Another reason she was strange, she was better at fighting in human form then in wolf form. Kuraku flipped herself over as she reached the demon's back and dove downwards spinning like a drill, landing her blow to the demon's back.

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

Kai panted heavily as she entered Wep'keer and made her way towards her house. She collapsed just a few feet away from it and tried to get up but failed. She felt Lika pull Ichiro off of her and then run off to go and find Samickle or someone to help them.

**_It wasn't like a normal unconscious slumber…I was dreaming at the same time…I could see Yukihime again, so clearly this time. She was with another now, a young man who had short black hair and a white mask on. I couldn't make out what animal it was but the mask seemed familiar, like I had seen it before. Yukihime looked happy…almost like…she was safe and truly at home._**

Samickle dashed up with Lika and carefully lifted Ichiro up and brought him into Kai and Lika's hut. He then returned for Kai and brought her into the hut before letting out a sigh, "Where is Kuraku and Oki?" He asked slowly getting to work on Ichiro's wounds.

"We don't know." Kai muttered.

"Then you all stay here! I'll go and find them." Samickle said and left the hut. He transformed and ran off quickly making his way towards Yoshpet.

-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-

The demon reared, sending Kuraku flying off its back, glaring madly the demon snarled. "Princess, you are strong!" He yelled stepping forward and putting his paw on her chest, crushing her slightly, "But, unfortunately for you, you aren't strong enough. Perhaps I shall just kill you both here…but what fun would that be? No…I want to watch you suffer, snow princess, just as you made me suffer when you killed my master."

"I didn't kill anyone big enough to be your master!" Kuraku yelled.

"Ahhh, my dear princess that would be incorrect!" The demon said pressing harder on Kuraku's chest.

Kuraku cried in pain, "Get off!" She cried. "What do you want with me? Who are you?" She cried.

"Stop squealing!" The demon growled before hearing a long howl, "Oh…that's my key, how depressing…well…sorry to cut this short." It turned on Oki and became a ball of light that flew towards him and seemed to disappear into his chest. "We'll meet again, young princess." Kuraku shivered and looked over her shoulder at Oki.

"Oki! Oki are you alright?" She asked shaking him before sighing and pulling him onto her back. She transformed and ran out of Yoshpet before falling forward under Oki's weight. Her vision was blurry but she made out a wolf standing above her. The wolf transformed and the blurry figure of a man was over her. The man first picked Oki up and heaved him onto his back before picked Kuraku up and ran off. Kuraku closed her eyes and passed out in the man's arms.

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I hope you liked it! Please review for me, everyone! Thanks a lot…again, I don't have much to say today! Haha! It's a first! Anyway, the next chapter will be up soon! Enjoy!  
(1) Takumi means Open Sea  
(2) Kouseki means Crystal  
(3) Kari is a shortened form of Hikari meaning Light  
(4) Kin means Gold  
(5) Kokoro means heart or spirit 


	3. Chapter 2: Legend Of The Snow Princess

Well! I'm sorry I've been gone so long but I had a temporary writer's block! My bad! 3 All the important stuff will be explained at the end of the fic! I have no notes for the beginning! Here we go!

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_Chapter 2: The Legend of the Snow Princess_

**Long ago, there was a beautiful young human girl who found herself lost in Kamui. This young girl wandered alone for many days and nights hoping to be found and not knowing her way home, out of the frozen waist. It was said that she was found on the seventh day of her wanderings, but by then had forgotten her name. The Onia had found her during a horrible**** blizzard and named her Yukihime****. The young girl seemed to have gained something while she had been sleeping the the cave, powers of the gods as the Onia called it and she came to be called Princess by the Onia. _And they named her Yukihime…And she came to be called Princess…_**

Kuraku groaned and rolled over, she wasn't sure where she was or what was going on, she only knew that she had been saved. "Where am I?" She groaned looking around, her eye sight was blurred and she couldn't see very well at all at the moment but she could make out distinct figures moving around in the hut.

"Ah! You're awake! It's about time!" Kai's voice said happily, "We were really worried about you, Kari! Samickle carried you all the way over here from Yoshpet and you kept muttering things about some demon. I guess you two ran into as much trouble as we did, though you got more hurt then we did…I mean…then Lika and I did…we hardly have a scratch on us…but Ichiro…he wasn't so lucky…"

Kai's words came as more of a jumbled bunch of sounds to Kuraku's ears then actual words. Kuraku blinked and looked around trying to see if anyone else was in the hut. She saw no one else but Lika who was in her wolf form sleeping. Ichiro was asleep in the room as well, or that's what it seemed.

Something was missing, "Where's Oki?" Kuraku asked finally realize what was missing. "He's alright…right? Tell me he's alright." Kuraku said slowly.

"Oki…well…" Kai started, "We aren't quite sure…he's woken up but we can't get the blood flow to stop…" Kai paused, "I'm terribly sorry, but we just can't get it to stop and we don't know if he's going to make it!" She said finished quickly, realizing Kuraku's temper was growing at an alarming rate. "You can go and see him if you want."

"Wait…I can? How long have I been out?" Kuraku asked quickly, eyeing Kai carefully. She sat up and began coughing before closing her eyes, thinking about the whole situation.

"You've been out for a day now. Oki was out for about half a day and Ichiro is still out…" Kai said slowly, "While we were in the forest…we were attacked by a demon that could change its shape into anything. It took on your mother's form and Yukihime's form and nearly killed Ichiro. He was trying to protect us. We've managed to get his bleeding to stop but we can't get him to wake up."

Kuraku glanced at her brother; he looked so peaceful laying there. She closed her eyes and when she opened them she was met by Samickle whose face was right in front of her own. "You alright?" He asked slowly.

"I'm fine." Kuraku replied softly, diverting her eyes to the ground next to Samickle, "Is Oki alright?" She asked slowly.

Samickle sighed, "You two just can't worry about yourselves can you?" He asked, "Oki's asked the same thing plenty of times…he's fine."

Kuraku sighed softly, "Good." She said slowly and closed her eyes, "Good, that's really good. Am I allowed to go and see him?" She asked.

"Yeah, he's with me for now…until we get the bleeding to stop that just happened to be where I put him and we didn't think it'd be wise to move him." Samickle said slowly, "So it won't be a very long walk, or in your case a very long ride." He picked Kuraku up and left the hut making his way for his own.

**She was taken in by a family who had but a young boy by the name of Takumi and grew close to the siblings, Hayate and Emi.**** Then the princess, my princess, defended the village from the demons that were attacking it and her only protection was her beloved and he came to be called her Protector. _And he was her Protector…_**

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

**And as time drug on, she took Emi and Takumi to the cave where the too gained special powers. Emi as a priestess and Takumi as a prophet. So they used their powers to aid the princess and Emi was called the Priestess and Takumi came to be named the Predictor._ And the Priestess and Predictor aided her…_**

Kuraku leaped from Samickle's arms and scrambled to Oki's said in a large panic when she saw the blood stained bed. She glanced up at Samickle who rolled his eyes. "I'm guessing you two want time alone, don't worry! I get it! I get it!" Samickle sighed leaving, "Kicked out of my own house." He snarled as he left.

Kuraku closed her eyes tightly as she kneeled down next to Oki, flinching at the pain in her chest cause by her sudden movements. She blinked and glanced around, realizing Samickle and Kai had previously stripped her over her mask, what good was talking with Oki if he wasn't going to look at her. She leaned onto her toes in a nervous way as she hovered over Oki. She sighed softly; he too had been stripped of his mask, though it made her smile, without a mask or identity maybe it was all going well after all.

"You know, the people who get to see you smile are really lucky…"

Kuraku screamed at the sudden sound of Oki's voice and threw her arms backwards to catch herself before she fell and she sat up quickly before letting a few words escape her lips, "I thought you were asleep." She whispered.

Oki gave her a weak laugh, either a really good sign or a really bad sign, she wasn't quite sure. "Everyone else must have too. No…I'm awake…" Oki sighed, "Wow, I was all worked up for nothing. It looks like you're perfectly fine." He fell silent and the only sound was his sharp coughs. "You know, I was worried you weren't going to wake up."

Kuraku laughed, "I wouldn't just leave like that, promise. About your wounds…can they really not get the blood flow to stop? Oki that worries me more then anything else." She sighed, "What if…you die? And I…It'd be my fault…this is my fault."

"None of this is your fault, you just didn't believe something. Kuraku, you're the bravest of all the women in the tribe. You're braver then some of the men, if anything you proved a point out there. I'm proud of you, so don't worry about me…I was just doing…what my mind told me…too…" Oki trailed off. What his mind told him too? Did that mean he was doing exactly what he had sworn not to do? Oki closed his eyes, it wasn't fair.

Kuraku smiled again, "You're proud of me?" She asked slowly, "That means a lot to me."

Oki blinked, laughing nervously, "Of course I'm proud of you. We're all proud of you for what you did out there. Putting your life on the line like that…it was simply stunning." He said softly, coughing again.

"Thanks." Kuraku said quietly, leaning forward and resting her head on his arm.

**And together they all defeated the demon, Kousetsu, but my princess was cursed. Kousetsu's second in command swore vengeance and disappeared forever, seven years latter he was seen on the outskirts of Yoshpet and with those seven years he brought a horrible blizzard in which Emi died. This day of death came to be known as the Day of Ice._ It was known as the Day of Ice…_**

Oki closed his eyes in pain the moment Kuraku's skin touched his, but it wasn't a pain he had felt before, it was like someone was driving a cold spike down his back and trying to force his soul out. The frozen feeling turned quickly into a burning sensation and Oki jerked upward, gasping for breath.

"Oki?" Kuraku asked her voice worried, "Oki? What's wrong?" She demanded.

Oki bit his lip, fighting a losing battle with whatever was in his body as it began to take control. Kill her. The voice echoed through his head, and no matter how hard he fought it the demon within his body was winning control. He rose to his feet looking down at Kuraku, whose eyes were wide with fright.

_So Princess…how would you feel if your beloved Protector destroyed you?_

_Kill the snow princess…_

_You're doomed to die…_

_Kill her now!_

"OKI!" Kuraku shrieked as Oki reached subconsciously for the dagger that was at his side. He lifted it slowly, his hands shaking as he tried desperately to regain control of his body. "OKI!" Kuraku cried again as held the dagger above her.

"Kuraku…get…out…"

Kuraku closed her eyes and there was a great flash of light.

**And so I, the great Predictor, was forced to watch alone as the Protector kept the Princess to himself. So I, the Predictor, was forced to watch as the Princess, my Princess, slowly withered away under the curse. And I, The Predictor, was killed before her very eyes…Takumi and Emi…dead…lost…forever…**

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

**_Princess, Snow Princess, what do you remember?  
_**_I was born in a land known as Nippon  
__And all I remember was hearing a soft song  
__Before finding myself in this cavern of ice  
__With no hope of returning to my previous life_

**_Princess, Beautiful Princess, how did you find us?  
_**_You found me in the cave of ages  
__And took me in, away from the cages  
__Of the ice that trapped me in the caves walls  
__With you at my side never shall I fall_

**_Princess, Human Princess, do you belong here?  
_**_These people are neither human nor beast  
__And I am human and am surely weak  
__But they love me all the same  
__And so I live here without any shame…_

**_Princess, Oh Princess, who do you trust?  
_**_Who do I trust you all may ask?  
__My Protector who is at my side  
__My Priestess who is always my friend  
__And my Predictor who is my loyal and beloved brother…_

Kuraku opened her eyes slowly and looked around in panic. Several moments ago Oki had been standing over her with a knife. Was she dead? Had Oki really killed her? It was such a stupid question. Oki wouldn't kill her, right? He had lost control, something had to be done or she'd end up losing her life, or worse, Oki.

Kuraku blinked, listening to the song, she'd heard it somewhere before. It seemed to be sang by two different people, a male and a female, the female's voice made her relax and tense at the same time as she sat there in the middle of what felt like an entirely white page or something similar. There was nothing but white light all around her, and it wasn't snow. She groaned in confusion looking around once more, narrowing her eyes as she tried to make out her surrounding area before hearing the song once more.

_Protector, Defender, why do you love me?  
_**_Though you are different we're on in the same  
_****_And while you are human your beauty remains  
_****_And though you pretend to be strong  
_****_I know deep inside the others are wrong…_**

_Predictor, my brother, do you love me?  
_**For you I died  
****For you I cried  
****I love you like I love the dawn  
****My sister, I live for your song**

Kuraku sighed and groaned again, the song was the one that her father had taught her, though it was a little different then what her father had taught her. She sighed softly and leaned back closing her eyes and listening to the song before scrambling to her feet as a new part was sung.

**Princess, My Princess, why do you help?  
**_Before her death I promised my Priestess  
__That if ever she died I would not rest  
__Until her will to save the others was completed  
__And so I aid you when I am needed…_

**Princess, My Princess, why do you sing?  
**_As I trained to protect those I loved  
__I believed my only protection came from above  
__But my protector was at my side to the end  
__And was there at the end, my only friend_

**Princess, My Princess, why do you weep?  
**_Right in front of me my protector was taken  
__By the demon of silver my blood he had hated…  
__And before my eyes, my brother was killed  
__By the demon of gold, his blood was spilled…  
__Lost are my loved ones, taken by demons  
__Silver and Golden I have one chance to free them…_

Kuraku froze, her face going pale as the area around her grew dark. "B-By the demon of silver…" She said slowly as the light returned, "And gold…" She glanced around slowly, "Where am I?"

She sat in a cave full of snow and ice and, much to her surprise, crystals. Bright and brilliant crystals that sparkled without light and glittered as her reflection danced upon them, pale and frightened. Kuraku's eyes were pulled towards a large crystalline mirror in the back of the cave; she blinked at her pale self, which was joined by two wolves in the mirror.

Kuraku looked to her right and then left, but found no wolves. She looked at the mirror and that sat there like guards, one brown and the other black. She looked up and then back at the mirror and the two wolves were joined by a man who stood over her. He looked just like Oki, so much so the similarities were frightening.

Again, Kuraku looked around and found no one standing near her. She looked at the mirror once again and instead of herself there was a beautiful young girl with long white hair and shining blue eyes that glimmered in the nonexistent sunlight. The wolves from before were now people, who bore resemblance to Ichiro and Kai, sending shivers down Kuraku's back. She looked up and back and the people were gone, but instead of her reflection, she saw the girl once more.

_-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-_

Kuraku passed out and Oki regained control of his body moments before the dagger made contact. He shook himself mentally and threw the dagger to the side sending it flying across the floor. He dropped to his knees and lifted Kuraku up placing his hand on her forehead, not sure what else to do then this. He pulled his hand backwards in shock when it came in contact with her skin, feeling like it was being fried off.

"Come on…wake up…" Oki whispered, now trying to regain control of his emotions, which had been sent flying all over the place by the happenings of five seconds ago. He felt mad, upset and worried all at once and had no clue how to deal with so many emotions all at once; it was growing hard to keep them inside as he normally did.

"OKI!" Samickle's raging voice pulled Oki into reality when he realized the dagger must have made contact at least twice, as Kuraku had two fresh gashes on her arms. He's eyes grew wide and his face became pale as he quickly snatched his mask from next to his bed and put it on, feeling safe as he lifted Kuraku from the floor set her on the matt that he had been sleeping on. He looked up at Samickle, feeling stronger emotionally with his mask to hide his frightened face.

"WHAT DID YOU DO!?" Samickle roared turning to Oki who flinched, normally he'd have Kuraku to protect him from Samickle's rages, but not this time. He was the best fighter, but the worse when it came to emotions.

"I don't know." Oki said bitterly.

"YOU DON'T KNOW!?" Samickle shouted glancing at Kuraku before advancing on Oki. "What do you mean you don't know!?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Oki yelled, "IT JUST HAPPENED!"

"I'm sure." Samickle spat, towering over Oki.

"I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!" Oki yelled, shaking with anger.

"WHY IS SHE OUT COLD!?" Samickle cried, seizing Oki's collar and shoving him against the wall, ignoring the damage he was doing. "WHAT DID YOU DO!?" He demanded again.

"I don't know." Oki repeated his voice failing him as pain took over his body. He could feel hot, red blood seeping through his bandages and running down his sides. He closed his eyes, determined not to let Samickle see the fear that was written on his face. Oki thanked his mask once again for protecting him.

Samickle dropped Oki, shaking with rage, "You could have killed her!" He growled, taking a kick at Oki but missing and hitting the wall hard.

"I didn't mean to! She just touched me and something took over my body! I couldn't stop it! I lost control!" Oki said trying hard to keep a level head.

"What are you saying?!" Samickle demanded, "That's stupid!"

"WHAT REASON WOULD I HAVE TO HURT HER? I WOULDN'T HURT HER!" Oki roared trying to stand before feeling a wave of dizziness wash over him. He fell back to his knees, coughing hard, "I couldn't hurt her." He finally managed to choke out in his defense.

Samickle glanced down at Oki before glancing at Kuraku hopelessly. He returned his eyes back to Oki. "You don't?" Oki asked.

Samickle sighed, "I do." He said slowly, "I swear if you hurt her…" Samickle stepped forward, towering over Oki once again, "I'll kill you."

Oki felt a wave of fear wash over him before shaking it away, "You wouldn't. She'd hate you! She'd never speak to you again if you so much as touched me!" Oki looked at Kuraku weakly before standing up, "She'd kill you, she'd never let you touch me."

"Keep telling yourself that." Samickle snarled.

"You don't know anything about Kuraku." Oki said flatly, leaning against the wall and holding his side, "I was about to kill her and she didn't move to even defend herself! She knew that I couldn't stop my-"

"AND SHE NEEDS SOMEONE TO PROTECT HER!" Samickle yelled, "She needs someone to keep her from destroying herself because of her emotions that she can't control!"

"She can control her emotions just fine!" Oki snapped before feeling dizzy and sinking back to his knees. "Face it, I'm just more important." He said bitterly moving back to Kuraku, turning his back on Samickle fully.

-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-

Kuraku gasped. "You're her!" She finally realized, "You're Yukihime!"

"Yes, Princess, I must warn you swiftly that if you are not careful you will lose them all." The girl, Yukihime said.

"Wait! The song! The demons! Silver and gold! You know what's wrong with Oki?" Kuraku asked frantically.

"Yes." Yukihime said.

"Then…Then…Then…" Kuraku said, "You can tell me how to help him!" She cried.

"No."

"Why not!"

"Because…I do not know how to stop it…as the same thing happened to me…" Yukihime's face grew sad and lonely, "I lost them all, and I do not want it to happen again."

"I…I don't want to lose him!" Kuraku cried.

"I know, Princess, though if it gets out of hand you have to…you're going to wake up soon." Yukihime said.

"What?" Kuraku asked.

"Listen, Princess, look for the two who live where no one has been." Yukihime said quickly, "OH! And your brother is sleeping as well, he will awaken shortly and he will know where you must go. You have to aid them at all costs; do not fear death or you will be forced to loneliness."

The cavern began fading out to black and Kuraku's eyes grew wide as she helplessly searched for Yukihime once again.

-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-..-

A silence had fallen between Oki and Samickle as the waited for Kuraku to awake once again. Samickle was sitting in the corner, his eyelids heavy with sleep. Oki sat next to Kuraku, fighting of the pain that was still in his side and was now ringing in his ears. "Wake up." He said under his breath.

Samickle rose to his feet and began pacing; Oki ignored him and continued looking down at Kuraku, worried beyond extent for her safety. What was worse is that it was his fault. He knew that the moment he tried to apologize she'd go and battle him, yelling and insisting that it wasn't, but he knew it was.

"…Oki…" Kuraku groaned, biting back the pain that rose to her throat in the form of a scream. She could tell by the way he moved that he was worried and doing more damage would be horribly foolish. She shook her head; the pain was flaming hot and burned in her body as though she'd been poisoned.

"Are you alright?" Oki asked slowly.

"I'm fine." Kuraku lied before squeaking in pain.

"What did you-?"

"Nothing!" Oki hissed and looked down at Kuraku uneasily, "I'm sorry." He whispered finding no other words. He had wanted to say something else but the words had lost themselves somewhere in his throat.

There was a long moment of silence in which Samickle had stalked over to the two, a protective gleam in his eyes. Kuraku looked up at him, he was worried as well, worried for her. She looked away coldly and nearly in a bitter fashion as if she was holding something against Samickle. Oki glanced up at Samickle and back down at Kuraku and frowned inwardly.

"What did you do too him?" Kuraku cried sitting up swiftly when she spotted Oki's side. "AHH! You're bleeding all over the place, Oki!"

Oki jabbed a figure up at Samickle, feeling dizzy once again.

"YOU!" Kuraku screamed standing up swiftly before collapsing on top of Oki who coughed when she landed on him. Kuraku staggered upward, jabbing her finger to Samickle's chest, "You hurt Oki!" She screamed.

"I did not!" Samickle lied.

"YOU LIEEEEE!" Kuraku screamed once again, "Why's the wall all bloody then!?"

"Er…I don't know…" Samickle glanced to the wall she had pointed too before looking down at Oki who, under his mask, smirked happily. Samickle deserved it.

"Tell me the truth!" Kuraku kneeled down in front of Oki protectively, "I'll kill you!" She snarled looking up at Samickle.

"Yes." Samickle sighed.

"HAHA! I KNEW IT!" Kuraku yelled, "Wait…I had to do something important…but I can't remember what it is now…"

"What are you saying?" Oki asked slowly reaching forward to tap her shoulder.

Kuraku screamed and jumped away, out of Oki's reach. "Don't touch me!" She cried.

"K-Kuraku?" Oki stammered.

"You must not touch me…" Kuraku said obviously frightened. "I'm sorry." She breathed.

"I understand." Oki rose to his feet and left.

"I have to save him…" Kuraku whispered glancing up at Samickle who nodded and watched her follow after Oki.

* * *

Note: Samickle and Oki are the only two who still call Kuraku by Kuraku instead of Kari.  
Alright! There's Chapter 2! I've figured several important things that are important but might be a comprehension spoiler of some sort of strange sort. So if you don't want to read this you don't have to!  
Anyway, I've finally figured out a big part of Kuraku and Oki's relationship. Oki loves his mask, because to him it acts as a security blanket of sort that he can hide behind and keep his fear hidden from others as he's managed to keep all emotion out of his voice other then anger. Kuraku hates her mask, it's a cage to her and nothing more, it hides her more favorite features such as her smile, though her emotion shows through her eyes she sees it as a cage and nothing more or less then that. So in short, Oki fears emotion, and Kuraku fears being caged behind a lie. In short it's about a girl who has good control of her emotions but doesn't like to control them, and a boy who has no control over his emotions but wants to control them.  
**Moving on! **Oki and Samickle do fight a lot about Kuraku, yes, when it comes to these parts, such as Oki "harming" Kuraku. They both care for her so it makes them bang heads. Then at other times, just wait, they're really close because of it. So to speak…hehe…until next time! 3 


End file.
